| Chinese media which take reporting reform as responsibilities are also experiencing reform per se. Media reform has never stopped during the last three decades in both the field of journalistic ideas and the field of journalistic practices. In the year 2002, China proposed a strategic idea of taking cultural system reform. As a micro subject in China's media industry, municipal media came into a transforming stage from institution to enterprise, which constitutes an important part of the development of culture industry in China.The thesis takes Mudanjiang Media Group (MMG) in Heilongjiang province as a sample. By analysing MMG's more than ten years'reform history through textual analysis, interviews and archive analysis. The thesis aims to understand the nature of media reform in China by raising and answering these crucial questions:(1) what kind of media system is compatible with the market economic system in a socialism country? (2) How to change the old media system into a new compatible media system through reform? (3) How to understand the new relations between media and market, media and state?Media reform in China can neither follow the privatization of media system in western societies, nor can it confine media's function as propaganda machine only. It is urgent to explore a way of reform that suits China's special national conditions. After experiencing a thirty-year reform, for Chinese media, taking reform or not is not a question anymore. The main problem now is how to take reform. Therefore, MMG grasped the opportunity to realize its demutualisation. During the process of demutualisation, MMG tests to answer the following questions.Firstly, MMG took reform in personnel system. All working staff in MMG changed their identities from a civil servant in public service unit to an employee in corporation. As a member of MMG, all people are paid according their contributions to the corporation. MMG provides platform for all the staff to realize ultimately their own values. It successfully separated the administrative functions from enterprise management. The system reform is not'turn over the cards'but'shuffle the cards'. The mechanism transformation is not to'change the soup'but to 'change the medicine'.Secondly, MMG made clear its ownership. As state-owned assets, the property right of MMG belongs to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC). SASAC assigns board of supervisors to MMG to supervise how it operates the state-owned assets. Therefore, MMG obtains'four autonomy'rights:self-operation, self-responsibility for its own profit and loss, self-management and self-development. According to the modern management in corporations, MMG clarifies the duty of the legal representative and balances the relations among the boards of directors, the Party committee and the board of supervisors. By reducing hierarchies and cost in management and enhancing efficiency in management, MMG broke down the old discipline of media management in China and created a new way for media management.Thirdly, MMG separated propaganda from operation. It keeps enhancing its the capacity to lead the direction of propaganda, strictly following the discipline of propaganda and putting ahead the leadership of Party and the social effect of media. The nature of corporation does not weaken the leadership of the Party. Moreover, it improves the effect and influence of propaganda through producing quality news programs.Fourthly, MMG consistently improves its competence in market economy environment. It divided its industry into original industry, extension industry and connection industry. Through developing multi-industries, MMG practices its personnel and improves its operational capacity. MMG also tested cross-media and cross-area regrouping in order to expand its industry and capitals. Through regrouping, MMG continuously adjusts its structure and enhances its competitive power.Separating the propaganda function of media from its corporation nature aims to realize the ultimate goal of media reform, that is, to establish an extensively-covering, fast-communicating and competitive media system.Municipal media live in an awkward situation in China's pyramid-structured media system. They have very limited competitive power in media market. MMG, as one of the municipal media has found a successful reform model, ranging from personnel system to financial system, media system to media structure. MMG's media reform proves that once the desire to take reform from below corresponds with the policy reform from above, an enormous reforming power will be generated. It is this reforming power that attracts media consistently to innovate, improve and develop. Although the way to (on) the reform is not smooth, these small steps show a spirit, an improvement, a tendency and a civilization. |
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